Big Brother legend Narinder Kaur has said she no longer feels safe in the UK after far-right riots have wreaked havoc across the nation.
Extremists have been setting buildings on fire, attacking police, and looting in cities including Sunderland, Bristol, Manchester, and Liverpool since last week.
The horrifying wave of violence started after three young girls were stabbed to death at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport on Monday.
Anti-immigrant, Islamophobic, and racist thugs have been rioting after social media posts falsely claimed the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker.
Narinder, 51, who came in ninth place on Big Brother in 2001, has said the ‘vile bigotry’ had left her feeling ‘scared’ about letting her daughter, 16, and son, 18, leave the house.
She wrote in The Mirror: ‘Witnessing the Nazi salutes by Leicester’s Clock Tower was chilling. This symbol of hate in a city that should represent unity is deeply disturbing.
‘My son was supposed to go on a trip to Newcastle, but we cancelled it out of fear of being attacked. I’m scared to let the kids out of the house at all.
‘My husband and I are wary of travelling around London, a city we’ve usually felt safe in, because we’re worried about our safety amidst these race riots. The threat is real and personal.’
Narinder said the attacks were a ‘cruel reminder’ of the racism she suffered growing up in 1980s Newcastle.
She said her school created a separate entrance for her to avoid horrific abuse from the National Front, while her classmates spat on and bullied her.
‘It is deeply unsettling to realise that now, in 2024, we are facing a resurgence of that same vile bigotry,’ Narinder wrote.
‘It is heartbreaking to see the fear in the eyes of the new generation, children and young adults who should be growing up in a society free of such hatred.’
It comes after BBC star Lauren Laverne said she was ‘heartbroken’ by the violent unrest in her home city Sunderland over the weekend.
On Instagram, she said: ‘Heartbroken for my hometown last night.
‘Sending love and solidarity to everyone beginning the cleanup today. Pic via @poprecs #sunderland.’
Former Geordie Shore star Charlotte Crosby, who is also from Sunderland, called the violence ‘shameful.’
She re-posted a statement from mayor of the North East Kim McGuinness to Instagram and wrote: ‘What started as a peaceful protest was completely ruined. Shameful. It really is.’
Earlier today, at least 10 police officers were injured after far-right rioters gathered outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham.
Around 700 people were among the crowd that stormed the Holiday Inn and tried to set it on fire while ‘terrified’ residents and staff were trapped inside, South Yorkshire Police said.
Prime minister Keir Starmer has pledged to ‘do whatever it takes to bring these thugs to justice as quickly as possible’.
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